Honkytonk Gelato

by Stephen Brook

A British writer describes his experiences traveling through the cities and small towns of Texas, and shares his observations on life in modern Texas

Genres: Travel

283 pages, Hardcover

First published June 6, 1985

About the author

Stephen Brook has been a contributing editor to Decanter since 1996 and has won a clutch of awards for his writing on wine. The author of more than 30 books, his works include Complete Bordeaux, now the definitive study of the region and in its third edition, and The Wines of California, which won three awards. His most recently published book is The Wines of Austria. Brook also fully revised the last two editions of Hugh Johnson’s Wine Companion, and he writes for magazines in many countries.

Reviews

[Abby Stopka · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never been to Texas but it makes me want to check it out. There's some good descriptions in this book and I think overall he did a pretty good job. Mind you this book was written back in the '80s so a lot has changed

[Frankie Luthard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weird af. Was initially interested in this book to get an Englishman’s perspective on Texas. Instead I got to read an Englishman say wildly outdated remarks about women and people of color. Couple of chapters were interesting. Didn’t seem like he enjoyed Texas all too much.

[Rogue Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wacky, witless, wealthy Texas. Brook is in turn delighted, dismayed, amazed, and horrified. Worth reading this wandering roadtrip through the Lone Star state.

[Robert Boyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's an old travel book about Texas that I read back in the mid-80s. The author's website is here: http://www.stephenbrook.com/index.htm . I was working in Nigeria in 1986 and traveling to London a lot. I saw this book, a travel narrative about Texas, at a bookstore and picked it up. It's in the genre of a Paul Theroux book--"I went to a place and traveled around a lot and met people and here's what happened." In short, a first-person travel narrative. I was feeling a little homesick at the time. But what I loved Brooks' style and erudition, and the way he allowed pretensions to be punctured by letting his subjects speak for themselves--and yet left you feeling warmly about many of the most ridiculous characters he met. It was the first time I had read about Texas from the point of view of a complete outsider. And it portrayed Texas at a particular point in time--after an almost imperial rise in economic power during the 70s and early 80s, just before the price of oil collapsed in 85. The insecurities of the nouveau riche were writ large in this book.

For a long time, I couldn't remember the name of the book or the author, even though I remembered the book itself quite well. But I was messing around on Google when I finally re-discovered the title. I immediately ordered a "new" copy through Alibris.

It is quite dated now, as such books tend to quickly become. Having just spent several days in Dallas, I reread the Dallas section of Honkytonk Gelato and found parts of it incomprehensible in terms of present-day Dallas, and parts of it as true today as when they were published 27 years ago. The five stars is a combination of my regard for the book and a certain nostalgia I feel about it.

[Lysergius · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brook's book confirms what I have always suspected about Texas, not a place I would want to visit. A useful warning I shall take to heart.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow, I am glad Mr Brook never came to Australia to travel about because I am sure he would have ruffled a few feathers with his observations. Despite his rather caustic pronouncements I enjoyed experiencing places like Houston, Dallas, Brownsville and San Antonio with such a sharp tongued guide. Not hugely interested in the chapters about the rich and ostentatious but loved his descriptions of the desert and the long, unwinding highways. I have another of Mr Brook's books, this one on Canada, and, I can't wait to see what feathers he ruffles there....